


A Gift of 76 Kisses

by Azure_Lynx



Series: 76 Kisses Series [1]
Category: The Gifted (TV 2017)
Genre: Alcohol, Angry Making Out, Angst, Canon Divergent, Chanukah, Established Relationship, Everyone's got Depression and Doubts but they're here for each other, Fake Dating, Family Feels, Ficlet, Fix-It, Found Family, General lovey stuff, Lots of kissing, Multi, New Year's Eve, Pain, Prequel, Solidarity, all of them - Freeform, ficlet challenge, friendship feels, lots of drunk shenanigans
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-06
Updated: 2019-03-02
Packaged: 2019-04-19 02:19:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 25
Words: 17,585
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14226981
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Azure_Lynx/pseuds/Azure_Lynx
Summary: Azure takes on the "76 Kisses" ficlet challenge. Explore relationships both romantic and platonic of all your favorite mutants and their supporters. Full of fluff and emotions!Part 1 - First 25 prompts





	1. “Good morning” kiss - Clarice/John

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fluffy Thunderblink. Just John being a sweet boyfriend when Clarice is in pain.

It wasn’t exactly a reasonable time to be awake, but it was the proper distance from midnight where you were up early instead of late, even if the sun hadn’t quite risen yet. Clarice was hyper-aware of every single bone in her body, and they all hurt, and it definitely sucked. 

But on the bright side, that meant a solid three hours before anyone came in with an emergency for John, probably, where she could just lay next to him, uncomfortable yet warm and pleased. 

John shifted, which shifted her, and her body cried out with pain. She stifled a groan.

Not well enough, clearly, because John’s eyes opened up and he peered at her sleepily. “Why are you awake, Clarice?” he asked, leaning over to kiss her Good Morning. 

“Pain.” She gritted her teeth. Great, now she was hurting and guilty. “I’m fine, go back to sleep.”

“You’re pretty clearly not fine.” He pushed himself up off the bed. 

“No. Stop. Come back.” She tried to sit up, but fell back with a groan. “Joooooooohn.”

“Calm down.” He shook his head, rifling through a drawer. “I’m just trying to help.”

She groaned again. Depending on other people was really hard to get used to after all this time. It made her feel nice, that John cared enough to do so, but also she felt bad that he was inconveniencing himself for her.

“It’s _really_ no issue,” he said, as though he could read her mind. “Here.” He pulled a plastic bag of pills and a water bottle from the drawer, walking them over to her. “Take some.”

She took two Advil in her hand and then tried to put one back, but John wouldn’t let her. “You don’t have that many,” she protested.

“You need it,” he replied. “It’ll be fine. Just take the pills, Clarice.”

She did, grudgingly. “Thank you.” She drank a good half of the water before offering some to John, who took a sip. “For everything,” she added. 

“Of course.” He settled back into bed. “Now let’s try to sleep some more, alright?”

She nodded, praying the pain pills would let her. But if they didn’t, at least she’d be conscious to enjoy this newfound love.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I saw this list of prompts and I was so excited. I'm hopeful that I'll be able to make it through them all, and stock some nice ficlets. The first up was a super relatable one for me, and I can't wait to write more of them.  
> As always, I'd love to know what you think!


	2. Kiss on the forehead - Lorna & Andy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Angst, hurt/comfort. Andy & Lorna deal with some emotions now that they're with the Hellfire Club.

Lorna had never seen a 15 year old boy cry, and she quite honestly found it very unnerving. 

“I’m - I’m sorry,” he gasped out. “It’s just - it’s just so _much_.”

They were back at the Hellfire Club headquarter, and Lorna was leaning against the wall in Andy’s room, where she’d come to ask him some question she had now completely forgotten about and found him shaking on his bed. When she asked him what was wrong, he simply burst into tears. 

She had absolutely no idea what to do. She wasn’t this kid’s mom - she found herself wishing for Caitlin or Lauren or even Reed, someone who would _know_ what to do for this kid.

“Take your time,” she said, shrugging. “I can leave if you want.”

He shook his head violently. “No, please.”

She shrugged again. “Ok.” She pushed herself off the wall, walking over to the massive, plush bed the Frost Sisters had chosen to reward Andy with, and sat down heavily. 

He looked at her through big, tear-filled eyes. “I’m just - just so _angry_ , and - and I - I shouldn’t, I know, but I miss my family-”

“Why shouldn’t you miss them?” Lorna asked. “I miss Marcos every day. Doesn’t mean I don’t believe in what we’re doing here.” _For the most part, anyway_. Slowly, she’d begun to realize that her preferred methodology didn’t necessarily align with the Frosts’ so much as she’d once thought, but she didn't think now was necessarily the right time to bring that up. 

Andy lowered his voice. “I - I’m not sure that _I_ do.” A fresh bout of sobs wracked his body. “God, Lorna. I’m sick of it. I’m sick of being angry all the time, or when I’m not mad, I’m so _empty_ that I just wanna be angry again.”

Now if that wasn’t relatable. 

“I know this doesn’t help you now,” she began, watching herself become the person she hated as a kid. What the fuck else was she supposed to say, though? “But it gets easier over time. You get used to it. It ain’t fun, but it’s life. And sometimes you’ll be something that’s not angry or empty - and those’ll be the best moments.”

“But what about before then?” he asked, his sobs slowing even though he looked equally as depressed. He managed to push himself up into a seated position. “I hate it.”

“I know.” Lorna pulled him into an awkward side hug, careful to avoid the baby bump, and kissed his forehead with more conviction than she felt. She didn’t know where the impulse came from, only that it felt right. “Until then, I’ve got you.” And as she said those words, she realized how much she meant them. If she did nothing else, she wanted to make sure Andy Strucker was ok.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I very very much like the relationship between these two. I feel like Lorna and Andy are very similar people, and they'd be quite close even within other groups. I also feel like neither of them is very good with emotions, but they can help each other bumble through. She may be the older sister/mentor figure, but that doesn't mean she can't learn a little from him too.  
> I hope you all enjoy! Can't wait to hear what you think.


	3. Drunk/sloppy kiss - Marcos/Reed

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fluff. Marcos/Reed with some background mentioned Marcos/Reed/Caitlin. Two dudes being emotional and a little tipsy.

Reed was definitely very drunk, which was probably how he had managed to shed his normal shackles of awkwardness and be comfortable with the amount of affection he was showing Marcos. They were sitting beside each other on a threadbare couch somewhere deep in the newest safehouse, just the two of them, and Reed was leaning heavily against him, right arm slung over his shoulder.

Marcos had consumed his fair share of alcohol, but clearly had a higher tolerance - he’s rank himself a lot closer to ‘mildly buzzed’ than to ‘absolutely wasted.’ But he didn’t quite have all his common sense, or else he’d probably have said something when Reed had ‘jokingly’ smacked his ass, instead of just smiling like an idiot. 

“I can’t believe we’re doing this,” Reed said, not for the first time. “I can’t believe we’re actually safe for now.”

Marcos raised his glass of tequila, sloshing a bit. “I'll toast to that.”

The word “toast” seemed to trigger something in Reed’s brain. “And” - he raised his own glass - “a toast to my wife,” Reed added, beaming soppily. “The most amazing woman on the planet.”

“Amen,” Marcos answered truthfully, knocking back the rest of his drink with a small huff. 

Reed chuckled, amused. “You think Caitlin is amazing?”

“Definitely.” Marcos was reevaluating his self-assessment - sober him would never be this honest. “I mean, both of you. I mean - the dedication - the loyalty -”

“You’re cute,” Reed said, and Marcos did a double take. Reed Strucker calling him ‘cute?’ It seemed both wildly out of character and too good to be true. 

He went on. “I told Caitlin I think so. She agreed. And she said if I wanted you, I could go for it, as long as I shared.” He laughed, shaking his head, seemingly unaware that Marcos had ceased breathing. “God, I can’t believe I said that. Sorry, that was very forward of me.”

“It’s cool, man,” Marcos struggled out, still processing this current turn of events. He was lucky enough that both people he was in love with...reciprocated? It seemed unreal.

“It’s just…” Reed paused, as his voice took a note of confession. “Cait and I got married really young. And I realized I was bisexual _after_ we’d done the whole ‘lifelong commitment’ thing. I didn’t know how to tell her but - she knew, man. She knew and she said it was ok and if I ever wanted to try something to just tell her.”

That was actually really sweet. Marcos appreciated how chill Caitlin was; he’d suffered the ill-effects of a jealous lover, and he didn’t wish it on anyone. 

“Did you?” he asked curiously. “Tell her, I mean.”

“We got here and” - he laughed - “she was already head over heels for you. When I told her, she was so relieved.”

Marcos wondered what, if anything, he should do with this information. 

“Anyway,” Reed continued. “I don’t know why I'm telling you this - I doubt you swing that way - I guess I just-”

“I swing all the ways,” Marcos cut him off, not quite thinking before he opened his mouth. But he wanted to live honestly, and part of that was not hiding his sexuality.

Abruptly, Reed’s mouth was on his, sloppy but enthusiastic. His eyes slammed shut and he dragged Reed closer, savoring the kisses, one after the other. 

“If this is you soliciting a threesome, then yes,” Marcos said breathlessly when they parted. 

“It’s not just about the sex!” Reed protested. “Though I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t imagined it. Vividly.” He winked.

God, this man flirted like a dad. Well, he was a dad, Marcos reasoned, which would take some getting used to. He couldn’t wait to start.

“I'm in,” he declared. “For anything and everything.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And now, we get to one of my favorite pairings! I'm a sucker for any combination of the Strucker parents and Marcos (and Lorna too). I had a lot of fun imagining what Reed would be like drunk - a little silly, a lot less guarded.  
> I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Let me know what you think, and if you have any suggestions for pairings (romantic or platonic) that you think I should explore!


	4. Awkward kiss - Lorna & John

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fluffy friendship feels! Lorna & John, a little while into their friendship and partnership as leaders of the Underground.

When you spent a lot of time with someone, and only consistently that person, it was easy to get it in your head you were in love with them, when actually you really aren’t. 

Since they’d been approached by the last of the X-men, Lorna and John had spent practically every waking hour together - and some of the sleeping hours, too, when they were short on space in their tiny little halfway house and needed to bunk together. 

Something about him made her feel safe, like everything would definitely be alright. He was her best friend, her partner in literal crime, her closest confidante. He held her back when she was going to do something stupid or dangerous and let her loose when he knew he couldn’t stop her.

The day he’d met her, he’d looked at her with a crooked smile and asked, “Ready to violate US law and uphold the Constitution?” She’d burst out laughing and from that moment, she knew she would really like the guy.

They did everything together, to the point where Lorna sort of forgot what being alone - really, truly alone, like the way she felt locked in that small room in that stupid mental institution - actually felt like. If he needed something, she was there, and vice versa.

It was like being two halves of a whole. And that’s what everyone said love was, right? 

To test this theory, Lorna was pressed into John, breathing heavily, and inches from his face. His body did not feel quite right against her, but it wasn’t a major deal-breaker.

Objectively, he was hot, but she wasn’t sure she was into the whole super-jacked ex-marine vibe. Still, you’d have to be pretty ridiculous to pass up such a good guy just because he had _too much_ muscle.

Her hands were tangled in his long hair, and she used that to pull his face over to her. Their lips didn’t align quite right, and it was nowhere near as pleasant as she knew kisses could be. There hadn’t been the expected spark, either. 

She was underwhelmed. 

John pulled away, awkward as a moose, and looked down at her. “Uh.”

“Nothing?” she asked. He shook his head sheepishly. “Yeah, me neither.”

“Do you...want to try again?” he asked, sounding very uninterested in repeating the ordeal. 

She shook her head. “I appreciate your commitment to making me happy.” She laughed. “Well, we proved it. Men and women really can just be friends.”

He laughed, relieved. “You’re real pretty, but I think the professional partnership is the better choice.”

“I agree.” She stepped back several paces, reclaiming her personal space. “Shall we get lunch?”

He nodded. “I suggest Mexican food.”

“You have excellent taste.” 

Maybe, Lorna reflected, there was some merit to the concept of a platonic soulmate. Because John was still her number one, even if the kissing bit was awkward as hell.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some good friendship feels, as requested! This one was real fun - got to do some backstory, and make it super platonic and funny and awkward. Hope you enjoy it as much as I do.


	5. Angry kiss - Lorna/Caitlin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's kind of angst? Certainly emotional, that's for sure. Lorna/Caitlin, working on some of their tension. ;)

The woman was _infuriating_. She just waltzed in here with her children and then acted like she knew every fucking thing, when really all she knew was what she’d managed to learn in a couple weeks. 

“I can’t believe you,” Lorna and Caitlin said at the same time, having cornered each other after the lesson. 

“ _You_ can’t believe _me_?” Lorna demanded. “Well, tough, because this is what life is like for people like us.”

“It shouldn’t be!” Caitlin shot back. “They’re kids, not soldiers.”

“In our world, you have to be both. If I don’t teach them to fight, then the next time some _jerk_ with something to prove, or worse, Sentinel Services - who had your fucking _husband_ , I might add, so you should understand the threat - comes around, they won’t be weak and defenseless.” 

Caitlin let out an angry, wounded sound. Lorna almost pitied her - almost - because she knew that all this was like being thrown into the deep, cold ocean. But you couldn’t pretend the ocean didn’t exist and expect not to drown. 

“I want my children to have some hope for a normal life,” she choked out. 

Lorna shook her head. “Normal is dead. Normal will not exist for us so long as Sentinel Services are hunting us, so long as hate groups like the Purifiers are allowed to exist without consequence, so long as people like _your husband_ keep putting people like us in jail for whatever they can manage.” She threw her hands up in the air. 

“I miss how things were before,” Caitlin whispered, more to herself than to Lorna.

“I mean, your open marriage is already pretty far from white-picket fence, nuclear family normal,” Lorna commented dryly. 

Caitlin glared at her. “You know damn well that’s not what I mean.”

Lorna shrugged, flicking one of her knives absently over her hand. “The mutant life is inherently dangerous. You just have to accept that this is what life’s like when everyone hates you - you have to learn not to let them kill you.”

Caitlin was pacing, clearly not convinced, though Lorna was hoping some of her words were getting through. “You wouldn’t understand - you don’t have children-”

“ _You think I like this?_ ” Lorna screamed. All the metal in the room started rattling, but she didn’t care. “You think I look forward to the day the baby inside me is old enough for me to teach them to fight? I don’t _want_ to put a knife in their hand, but I do it cuz I _have_ to.”

Caitlin muttered an apology under her breath. A large metal paperweight flew off a desk and towards her head, but she caught it easily. “Classy,” she said, sarcasm dripping off of it. 

“You caught it, didn’t you?”

Caitlin rolled her eyes and pitched the ball at Lorna as hard as she could. Lorna debated letting it bean her in the forehead, knowing it’d make Caitlin feel guilty as all hell, but at the last second she used her powers to stop it, letting it hover. “‘Classy,’” she mimicked.

“You started it,” Caitlin muttered. Somehow, the two women were growing closer and closer together.

Lorna snorted. “What are you, five?” If she reached out, she could tangle her hand in Caitlin’s hair and yank it, wherever she pleased. That was a startling thought. 

“Five flavors of pissed off,” Caitlin tried weakly. Her eyes were twitching up and down between Lorna’s eyes and mouth. 

“Guess I’ll find out.” Lorna was still annoyed, so she was far rougher than she had to be, but feeling her mouth crash into Caitlin’s gave a sort of satisfaction that no amount of yelling would be able to. She bit and pushed and pulled and Caitlin tried to be equally as aggressive, but Lorna was unmatchable. 

They pulled apart, breathless. “Well,” Lorna said after a beat. “I think we may have just found a way to coexist without killing each other.”

“I’m still mad,” Caitlin protested, the edge back in her voice. 

“Oh, me too.” Lorna smirked, and with a twitch of her fingers, she used the metal in Caitlin’s chunky bracelets to drag the woman’s arms over her head. “But this is much more fun than yelling, I’m sure you’ll agree.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Listen. I love two women bickering until they make out. I love it. And I really wish Lorna and Caitlin had more interactions in canon - their conflicting strategies but similar goals make them such an electric couple to watch.  
> I'd love to know what you think!


	6. “I’m sorry” kiss - Marcos/Lorna

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Soft, sad angst. Marcos/Lorna, what can happen when two people who love each other have different ideals. Sometimes love isn't enough.

“You’re back?” Marcos breathed, reaching out to touch her in disbelief. It was as if he thought he could make her disappear just by being too loud, or too quick, or too slow to act.

Lorna smiled at him, but there was a tinge of sadness behind it. “I’m back.” _For now,_ she added in her head, though he could never know it was temporary. 

“Why? How?” He pulled her close for a hug, though he was clearly unsure how to handle the massive baby bump. She looked like a balloon, ready to pop any day now.

She shrugged. “The Frosts and I don’t exactly see eye to eye these days.” So she left them, just like she left the Mutant Underground when she disagreed with _their_ methodology. 

That wasn’t what he wanted to hear, though, and she knew it. Lorna traced his jaw with her thumb, feeling the hair that should’ve been shaved days ago. “Besides, I missed you.”

“God, I missed you too.” He rested his forehead against hers, tears leaking from the corners of his eyes. “Where’s Andy? Did you bring him with you?”

She nodded, even though the kid would likely be leaving too when the time came. They were a team now, and where she went, he followed, for better or for worse. “He’s with his family.”

Marcos nodded, signalling that all was as it should be in his eyes. Then he dragged her over to the bed, pulling her close and resting his hands on her swollen belly. “The baby’s so big,” he whispered wonderingly. 

Lorna smiled. “I think this is a normal size. I dunno. Caitlin probably knows.”

“Caitlin should help deliver her,” Marcos suggested suddenly. “Since we don’t really have access to a hospital or anything.”

Lorna nodded. “That’s another reason I came back.” Caitlin Strucker was not Lorna’s favorite human, but she was undeniably committed and dependable, not to mention a damn good medic. If she trusted anyone with the new life, it was Caitlin. 

Also, the kid would need someone besides Marcos to care for them after they were born, and the Struckers were clearly good parents.

The thought of leaving her newborn behind was the kind of pain that tore through every nerve like all of her knives at once. But it wasn’t exactly safe to keep an infant on hand when on a mission to physically destroy the oppressive institutions holding mutant-kind down. 

Marcos would be better at raising a baby, anyway. It was the cold truth that he was better with emotions and humans and compassion and everything useful for parenting. The only person under twenty Lorna had ever connected with was Andy Strucker, and that alone was kind of terrifying. His similarities to her at that age scared her. Imagine her own baby.

These were things she told herself to lessen the sting. It did not help as much as she’d have liked.

She was back now, and it was better not to think about leaving just yet. But as Marcos pulled her close and kissed her, all she could think about was the inevitable second betrayal when he realized she was gone again. 

She poured every ounce of remorse she had into the kiss, because she wasn’t going to change her mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I gave myself a case of the Sadness with this one.  
> I really love the idea of Lorna and Andy striking out on their own, no organization backing them. Just the two on a mission. I also think that Lorna knows better than to try to keep her baby with her - everything she's ever done has been practical, like training the kids, but you can't give a baby a knife. And thus, tactical decisions.  
> Sometimes you love a person, but the Greater Good is at stake.  
> As always, I love to hear your thoughts!


	7. “I’ve missed you” kiss - Caitlin/Reed

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Takes place during episode 1.04. A little look inside the aftermath of Lorna and Reed's rescue, while Reed and Caitlin are driving back with John.

He was back. He was gaunt and his leg was bleeding but he was alive and he was back. 

She never wanted to let him go again, so she clutched him tight as they peeled out of the parking lot and swore that she would make him feel all her emotion. She offered up a silent prayer for Marcos’ safety and success before turning her whole attention to her husband, attached like a vice grip. 

She kissed him hard on the mouth. “I thought I might never see you again - oh god, Reed, I was so afraid.” Her words poured like water from a storm drain.

“Me too,” he confessed quietly, kissing her again. He kept tracing his hands across her like he wasn’t quite convinced she was real, and not for the first time, she wondered what they’d done to him. 

John was quiet, letting them have their moment, and for that she was forever grateful. She’d have to thank him later. His eyes were visible in the rearview mirror, constantly checking if they were being followed, and his vigilance meant they could relax. 

Reed took this opportunity gladly, and he was out in minutes. It was like they were young again, when Lauren was just a hyper toddler and Andy a screaming, fussy infant and they would steal whatever sleep they could manage. Reed had been known to take some strange positions, like the one time he’d passed out half off the couch where Lauren napped, as if he himself was the crib to protect her. 

When they’d go on family trips, Reed would pass out in the passenger’s seat while Caitlin drove for hours, and then Lauren once she was old enough. If she pretended hard enough, it was almost like that. Just with more blood and stress. 

She kissed his temples, knotting their fingers together. He snuffled quietly in his sleep, and she was impressed he could be out through the agony he must’ve been feeling in his knee. But she knew her husband was a fighter. 

They all were, at this point. And that’d be how they survived.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the adrenaline crash after all they did to rescue him. A sweet, stolen moment.   
> I appreciate their history and their companionship - it makes the journey and fight they fight together easier, and more tolerable.   
> Thanks for your continued support!


	8. Seductive kiss - Esme/Lorna

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set post-season one, after a little while of Lorna and Andy and them living at the Hellfire Club headquarters. Esme decides to push a little bit to get what she wants.   
> I'm gonna tag this as dubious consent because I've thought about it a lot and I'm still not sure what the ethics of planting a dream in someone's head are, but it's certainly not clear cut.

Esme Frost was not a patient woman. When she wanted something, she went for it, be that an assassination or a thing or even a person. Life was too short to waste, especially as a mutant. There was no time to look back on the road and check for dead bodies.

But people were tricky. She’d been told time and time again that socializing was a two-player game, no matter how inefficient (and very boring) that seemed. When you could control other people, why would you bother waiting for them to do something when you could just make them do it? Still, people often got upset when controlled against their will, and it was important that people stay calm and thereby loyal to the cause.

It was also very important that Lorna Dane like her, for a variety of reasons. She was very nice to look at. Seemed like a fun diversion - after all, revolutions were stressful. She was practically royalty. And she was useful.

So Esme couldn’t just _control_ Lorna into doing what she wanted. But it didn’t hurt to plant a suggestion in the mind - just a drifting, dreaming thought. All it did was make someone think about it, same as subtly working it into a conversation. And she’d done it before, so she knew it would cause a cascade of thoughts.

Lorna was sleeping soundly on the other side of the door. Esme leaned up against the wall next to it, crossing her arms over her chest, and let her thoughts drift and broadcast. She didn’t much care if anyone else heard them - let the others have a front row seat to her fantasies.

_“Hello,” Esme said, leaning back in a plush chair. She and Lorna were alone in the library, with a crackling fire lighting the dark room. She had on her best Nancy Reagan-style day dress, and she was damn sure she looked ravishing._

_“Hi,” Lorna replied, raising an eyebrow. “Waiting for someone?”_

_“Just you.” Esme closed the book she’d been reading, placing it on the table beside her. “I thought it was a good time to discuss our…_ goals _moving forward.” She let the word hang heavy in the air, making the atmosphere as charged as possible. Her eyes roved up and down Lorna’s figure, clad in a black jumpsuit with a very nice neckline._

This Lorna wasn’t the real Lorna, Esme was acutely aware. That annoyed her. The real Lorna would be watching all this as though it were her, but it wasn’t.

Oh well. 

_“Our goals.” Lorna smirked, drawing closer. “And what would those be?”_

_Esme pushed herself out of the chair, rising to meet the other woman. “Something like this.” With her towering high-heeled boots, Esme was tall enough to lean forward and simply draw Lorna into a long, lingering kiss._

“What’re you doing?” Andy asked, startling Esme. Her eyes flew open and flared electric blue, and he took a step back. “Whoa, sorry. Just wanted to know if you were ok. I was getting weird flashes - it felt like your powers were -”

“My powers are fine, thank you, Andy.” Her voice was clipped and he frowned, hurt rolling off him in waves. She felt a bit of regret, because she prefered the kid like her. “I just have a headache and I was trying to see if I could make it go away on my own.”

She tried to channel whoever she’d been before, back at the Underground. The kind of pretending she did to make herself both important and appreciated. 

People always liked that Esme better than the Esme that really existed. 

“Can I get you anything?” he asked her, but she shook her head. He shrugged. “Feel better.” He walked off, giving her only a backwards glance. 

The door opened. “Esme?” Lorna asked, blinking blearily. 

“Are you alright?” she asked sweetly, her predator’s smile back on her lips. “I felt strong emotion - I came to check on you.”

Lorna shook her head and for once, Esme couldn’t tell what she was feeling. “I just had the strangest dream…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one's dedicated to MTL17, who gave me a prompt I couldn't pass up. It was a great opportunity for a bit of an Esme character study, because she's quite a complex one with an interesting set of morals. I had a lot of fun writing this one!


	9. “War’s End” kiss - Strucker Family

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A Very Optimistic look at one potential future. A best case scenario. How the "war" the Mutant Underground faces might end.

A lot had happened in five years.

Aurora was born, happy and healthy. Lorna had come back and then left again, taking Andy with her each time. The Hellfire Club had been debilitated by Sentinel Services, but still, like a Hydra, been desperately fighting. 

Jace Turner had turned Purifier and then gone out in a blaze of misguided hatred. It had made national news and stirred up waves of sympathy for the mutant cause, the likes of which had never been seen before. His wife joined a reconciliation group to de-radicalize other Purifiers and make sure no one shared her husband’s fate. 

Lauren had become a leader of the Mutant Underground. Clarice and John found a sympathetic judge to marry them, and Clarice gained legal custody of Norah, just in case. Caitlin was a full time medic and Reed was working hard to guide Lauren and the others with his former skillset. Marcos was first and foremost a father, and Caitlin helped him as much as she could.

Lorna and Andy had struck out on their own. The Hellfire Club hadn’t been what she’d wanted after all, and where Lorna went, Andy went. They’d drop in occasionally on the Underground, bringing refugees or supplies, and then they’d disappear again to attack Sentinel Services. Caitlin wasn’t sure how she felt about that, but Andy was an adult now. She stopped having say a while ago. 

And on a national scale, the unthinkable had happened: the people had elected a mutant president. 

They hadn’t realized it, of course. But they had known they were electing a pro-mutant president, a president who vowed to bring peace: protection for all sides. A focus on teaching mutants to control their powers instead of punishing them for going wild. 

The president who turned out to be a shapeshifter, revealing herself after a year in office. 

Since then, the anti-mutant crew in congress had been trying desperately to impeach her, but bureaucracy was a slow-moving mechanism, and there wasn’t enough basis. She was the best president the US had seen in years.

Then, at the midterms, more mutants got elected; closeted politicians showed the world their powers; people opened up about their mutant children, cousins, spouses, nieces and nephews; and suddenly, everyone knew a Good Mutant. People started pushing legislation, talking about peace and acceptance.

It’s not like everything was fixed. The laws were still tight. But things were a lot better now. 

Caitlin sat, idly watching TV. Calm moments were more common nowadays, so she could afford a break. A news anchor in a drab grey sweater was announcing the President’s latest controversial decision: the end of her term was fast approaching, though she was seeking reelection, and she had just pardoned the entirety of the Mutant Underground. What commentators called a death knell for her career came as a relief to Caitlin.

“Mom?” 

Caitlin’s head whipped around. “Andy?” she choked out. 

She barely recognized him. His visits were getting less frequent, now that things were safer, and it’d been a long while. His hair was freshly cut, and he had shaved, and he was so tall - god, weren’t kids supposed to be done growing by twenty? - and she sprang to her feet, throwing her arms around him. 

It felt different this time. “Is this it?” she asked, crying softly as she squeezed him tight. 

He nodded, face buried in the top of her head. “We’re home for good now.”

Home. That’s what this was, after all this time, and now it was whole again. 

“Hey, Mom, did you hear-” Lauren broke off abruptly. “Andy?” She turned to shout over he shoulder. “ _Dad, Andy’s back!_ ”

Reed Strucker came racing into the room. He looked at his son in disbelief, then down at his wife before embracing them both. He kissed them both on the head, close to tears himself. 

Lauren stood where she was, frozen. “You're back,” she breathed, as if she was looking at a mirage. 

“Yeah.” He shoved his hands in his pockets. “It’s over. According to Lorna.” He laughed lightly. “I think she's just sick of missing her kid.”

Caitlin smiled. “You should go say ‘hi’ to your baby sister. She’ll be glad to have you back.”

Lauren squeezed his hand as he walked past. “Welcome home.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was an interesting prompt! I wasn't quite sure what to do with it because the war our characters face is non-traditional. I decided to go this route, and pour all of my hope into it. Is it realistic? Maybe, maybe not. It's a show about mutants, though. And what's important is keeping the hope.  
> Always happy to know what you think!


	10. “Goodbye” kiss - Clarice/Lorna

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Takes place right after episode 1.13, when Lorna and the others are getting ready to leave. Clarice/Lorna, definitely some angst, but Clarice never loses faith.

“Hey!” Clarice grabbed Lorna’s wrist, panting slightly. “Hey.” She'd sprinted after the woman, down a long deserted hallway, desperate to catch her before she left. It seemed pure miracle that Clarice had managed.

Lorna turned back to her. “Are you gonna try to convince me to stay, too?” she asked, scowling.

Clarice held up her hands placatingly. “No, nothing like that. I know I can’t.” She smiled sadly, pushing her hair off her face. She was going to miss that combative spirit - a girl with a fight in her veins. Something Clarice could respect. Something she could love.

Lorna softened a fraction of an inch. “Oh. Okay.” She pulled her arms into herself, crossing them over her chest. She seemed almost part of the shadows in the hallway, and Clarice couldn't quite decide if it was in a moral way or just a sad one. “Then what do you want?”

Clarice sighed. “Just...to say goodbye, I guess. A real goodbye, not staring each other down across the foyer as everyone wonders who’s gonna turn on each other.”

Lorna’s eyes flared and Clarice winced. “I’m not _turning_ on you guys. We just have different ideas of how to win.”

“Right. Sorry.” Again, that sad smile she couldn’t keep off her lips. “I really admire your idealism.”

“So come with me.” It was a whisper, and Clarice might’ve thought she imagined it had Lorna not looked quite so vulnerable for a second.

“I can’t. You know I can’t.” She shook her head. “Some places I can’t follow you.”

“Can’t or won’t?”

“I’ve been down that road before, and not even the most beautiful girl in the world can drag me back.”

Lorna growled in frustration, though she must’ve known the answer before she even asked. Inside her chest, Clarice’s heart was breaking, and she knew it was the same for Lorna.

They stood facing each other for a minute in silence, before Lorna sighed. “Okay.”

“Okay.”

“Okay.”

Lorna looked like she was ready to go, so Clarice forced her last thoughts in order. They all tumbled out in a rush: “Just...just remember what I said. About how your parents don’t determine who you are. You’re making your own choices, Lorna Dane, and you always have been. Just make sure you can live with yourself.”

Lorna smiled, and it mirrored the same melancholy Clarice was feeling. “I couldn’t live with myself if I didn’t do this.”

At first Clarice thought she meant leaving, but then Lorna was closing the distance between them for a long, lingering kiss.

“Goodbye, Clarice,” she said sadly, turning away.

She left Clarice standing there, hugging herself and rocking on her feet. “You can come back,” she called after Lorna. “We’ll always have a place for you. _I'll_ always have a place for you.”

She wasn’t sure Lorna had heard until Lorna held up one hand in a backwards wave. Somehow, the gesture gave her hope.

Maybe the “Goodbye” was just for now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think about these two a lot. Ever since they had that conversation at the Frost sisters' hideout, where Clarice reassured Lorna and talked about her own past. It was a touching scene, and I like to think Clarice holds onto that hope and belief in Lorna.  
> Let me know what you think! Always a pleasure to write for you all.


	11. “I almost lost you” kiss - Clarice/Sonya

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Takes place during episode 1.10, with Clarice and Sonya having a moment after Sonya is shot but not killed. Canon-Divergent AU.

She didn’t exactly like Sonya, it was true. But she didn’t want the other woman to _die_.

The abject _terror_ she felt hearing the sharp crack of the gunshot and watching Sonya crumple - it was the kind of primal fear Clarice hadn't experienced in a long time. It was like the thought of impending starvation, or darkness threatening never to leave. 

She was screaming. She knew she was, and Lauren and Andy were screaming too in that tiny glass box and she wanted to tell them not to do it anyway, that none of their lives were worth the kind of damage Trask could wreak with such power to him, but _dammit_ Clarice was a human being and humans were hard-wired to fight to stay alive. 

When Trask pointed his gun at her, her voice died in her throat. But at least she could see Sonya’s hands fluttering, hear her quiet groaning, and pray that the bullet was on the ground beneath her. If she craned her neck, she could see it had passed clean through Sonya’s shoulder. 

Any lower and it would've pierced a lung for sure. Clarice wondered how precise his aim was. She didn't hope to find out. 

The children complied. It upset Clarice, but her instincts had taken over and no sounds left her mouth. The only noise was the grinding of her own teeth and Trask's insufferable gloating voice. She didn't even know what he was saying, only that he was celebrating the destruction of his laboratory wall, which signalled the start of the destruction of mutantkind. 

They threw Clarice and Sonya back in their cell, both women hitting the cold ground with a harsh thump. All Sonya did was groan, and Clarice wished desperately that Caitlin was here in her place. Caitlin was a medical professional. She'd know what to do. 

Clarice took a deep breath. Back in her old life, she'd watched enough medical procedurals with ridiculously hot nurses and had enough common sense to know that if she didn't stop the bleeding fast, Sonya was dead. 

“Come on, come on. Stay with me, Dreamer,” Clarice mumbled under her breath, tearing at the edge of Sonya’s shirt to make a bandage. 

Sonya looked up, intense pain clouding her vision, but she tried for a smile. “Buy...a girl dinner…first,” she joked through gritted teeth. 

“You screwed around inside my brain. I think we're way past dinner, Cloud Girl.” Clarice couldn't help the relief that Sonya was talking, even if she was being annoying as shit. 

Sonya winced and Clarice would concede she was not being as gentle as she could be. She stuffed fabric over the wound and then tied it down tight with more fabric. 

“That's the best I can do,” she apologized. “They'll fix it better when we get out of here.”

Sonya's face was very close and Clarice wasn't quite sure who initiated the kiss, only that it was very surprising and not unpleasant. 

“God, you could have died,” she breathed. “I thought for sure he'd shot you lower down. Got your lung or your heart.” She was feeling a million things at once - anger, hatred, relief, confusion, and affection, just to name a few.

Sonya smiled reassuringly, dragging her hand along Clarice’s cheek. “I'll be around for you to bitch at awhile longer. No need to worry.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> These two had so much chemistry and so much potential. I am such a fan of the "rivals-to-lovers" style trope. Everything would've been different if the bullet had been a few inches off, and I wanted to explore that.   
> Hope you all enjoyed me trying to fix the canon! ;) I'd love to know what you think.


	12. Kiss on the nose - Sage/Sonya

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pre-show, a little while after Sonya showed up at the Underground. Some wholesome sweet fluff between two of our lovely mutant gals, Sage/Sonya.

Sage was like a computer, which meant she was _delightfully_ amusing to short circuit.

Sonya was sitting on a table, bored as hell and in a very playful mood, swinging her legs while Sage was working on God-knew-what-sort of calculations. It was a slow day in the middle of a slow week and she was pretty sure the computer girl was just doing that sort of thing for fun. 

“If I popped open your brain, would I find wires?” Sonya teased. 

“You know you wouldn't,” Sage replied. “At least not in the sense you're thinking.”

Sonya laughed lightly, blowing a cloud of smoke and watching it drift before she sucked it back up. “I don't even need a cigarette.”

“Cigarettes and Sentinel Services have an equal chance of killing you,” Sage commented absently. Sonya knew Sage wasn't even there anymore, lost in the math she didn't even need to write out. It seemed an unlikely statistic, but Sage was better at these things than Sonya would ever be, so she trusted the computer girl.

Didn’t mean she wouldn’t needle her. “False,” Sonya replied, not bothering to give a reason.

Sage scrunched up her nose, still spaced out but clearly somewhat invested. “True.”

“My lungs are already full of smoke, and I’ve never felt a single negative effect.” Sonya grinned wryly. “Therefore, Sentinel Services are much more dangerous than cigarettes.”

Sage made an annoyed growl in the back of her throat. “That’s not how that _works_ ,” she corrected, though she didn’t bother looking at Sonya. “It’s not the same thing.”

“Oh yeah? Why not?” 

Sage groaned. “I don't have time for this.”

“Talk to me, Sage.”

“Go annoy John. I'm sure he's also doing important work you can disrupt.”

“But,” Sonya retorted, “I don't owe John what I owe you.”

“You owe me peace.”

“I owe you love and attention.”

Sage whirled around to face her. “I don't really want your attention right now!” Her eyes were filled with frustration and Sonya could practically hear the internal fans blowing full speed to keep the woman from overheating. 

“What about my love?” Sonya asked quietly.

“Love?” All of a sudden it was like Sage had hit a wall. Error messages flashed in her eyes and Sonya laughed, kissing her on the nose, which only sent more sparks flying. If she popped open Sage’s head, there'd be a mass of smoking wires for sure.

“Love.”

“You can’t - you can’t do that,” Sage huffed. “You can’t say you love me for the first time while I’m in the middle of doing something. Aren’t you supposed to be the romantic one?”

“I just like frying your circuits.” Sonya laughed and kissed her on the nose, watching the wires short out once again. “It’s cuz you’re the cutest computer around.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Is this in character? Who knows? I choose to believe yes, because they're cute as hell. Times were simpler then, before Sentinel Services and Trask were on them all the time.  
> This was really fun. I love Sage and I love Sonya and I love the freedom to explore their characters. I also love all the computer jokes that can be made.  
> I hope you all enjoyed!!


	13. Kiss on the ear - Marcos & Lauren

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marcos and Lauren have a heart-to-heart, and then an awkward stumble becomes a laughable bonding moment.

“I just...don't really know how all of this should work,” Marcos confessed, leaning on the edge of her cot. “I've never - it's only ever been me and Lorna, or before that, me and Carmen. Just the two.”

Lauren squeezed his hand. “Listen. I’m not really an expert or anything, but if you just _talk_ about everything, I think it will go a lot easier than you expect.” She chuckled fondly at how nervous Marcos looked over the whole ordeal, taking a sip of her late night hot chocolate. 

She hadn't really known what to expect when he'd asked her to meet him in the kitchen this late at night - he said he didn't want other people to overhear - but she really hadn't thought she'd find him asking her for her blessing to pursue her parents romantically. 

She was a mutant, sure, but this still made Top Three Weirdest Moments in her life. 

“Everything will be ok,” she told him, though really the only thing she could actually be referring to was this specific situation, because they were in the middle of a war and the only good thing these days was the way Marcos had been falling asleep on the couch with her dad and the way her mother looked at them both. 

She wished Andy was there with her. He'd have laughed at the whole situation too. 

Marcos stood, pushing in his chair and grabbing his mug. “Thanks for being so chill about your parents and me.” He ducked down, aiming for the top of Lauren’s head, but at the last second she moved and he caught her ear instead.

They stood in silence for a beat.

Lauren blinked. “Did you just...kiss my ear?”

“Not on purpose…” he scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. 

She laughed a little. “So you meant to kiss my head?”

After another beat of silence, he admitted, “Yeah.”

“Why?”

“It seemed like the...I don’t know, what am I to you if I date your parents?”

Lauren had spent a lot more time thinking about this than she wanted to admit, so she gave him the most concise answer she had. “I don’t know...on the one hand, it’s like ‘extra parent’ status, but on the other, you really only feel old enough to be the older brother I never had.”

He nodded. “So whatever role that is, that’s what I was trying to do.”

Lauren stood, moving to where Marcos was standing, and pulled him into a hug. “You don’t have to try anything,” she reassured him. “I promise, you’re already family.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a quick, cute moment featuring my fave ship in the background and some good platonic family feels in the foreground. I love them lots and hope you do too!


	14. Kiss on the neck - Sonya/Lorna

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sonya and Lorna have a little bit of fluffy Holiday romance. Set a year or so prior to the series.

“It can be Girls’ Night.”

“Every night is Girls’ Night with you.” Lorna rolled her eyes fondly, getting up from the couch. “In fact, when you asked me to date you, you specifically asked for an ‘eternal Girls’ Night.’ Those were your exact words when you handed me the massive bag of Ghirardelli squares and the can of Arizona Iced Tea to share.”

“I worked hard to find the best Kosher candy I could.” Sonya wrapped her arms around Lorna from behind, burying her hands in the girl's sweater and kissing up her neck from her collarbone, trapping her. “Does this convince you?” she whispered, her breath tickling the shell of Lorna’s ear.

Lorna chuckled. “Somewhat.” She craned her neck to try to look at Sonya. “But it’s Chanukah, which is about family, so if you’re trying to convince me to do this _without_ our family, you better have a more compelling argument than hormones.” 

“Chanukah lasts _eight days_ ,” Sonya replied petulantly. “That means that we have _seven other days_ that we could spend with them.”

Lorna disentangled herself. “Come on, babe, they’re expecting this.”

“You think half the people here realize today is the first day of Chanukah?” Sonya laughed. “It'll be like every other year when we surprise them and haul their asses to the table for dinner. No one is _expecting_ anything from us.”

“If no one else, John remembers. He keeps track of these things. Because he loves us.” Lorna stared at Sonya pointedly.

Sonya grumbled. “John would understand,” she protested weakly, but they both knew she had already lost.

Lorna laughed lightly, pulling her girlfriend into a hug. “Listen, babe, any other day I would agree with you. But it’s Chanukah, and we only get so many excuses to do something like this.”

“I guess you’re right.” Sonya sighed, resting her forehead on Lorna’s. “Besides, you know Marcos is gonna drag us into the Christmas celebrations sooner or later - we have to stay even with the Catholic boy.”

Lorna kissed her, grinning. “That’s the spirit.” 

“Can we at least make the fancy garlic and rosemary challah bread?” 

“Of course. Anything you want,” Lorna said. When Sonya started to open her mouth, Lorna added quickly, “Besides that. You already agreed.”

Sonya pouted, but Lorna knew she had no rebuttal. 

In an effort to cheer her a little, Lorna offered, “What if I gave you a present early?”

At that, Sonya perked up, though she tried to be cool. “I would be...interested in seeing the surprise. If it’s the one you’ve been talking about for months.”

“It is,” Lorna replied with a smile on her lips. She pulled a box from the pocket of her leather jacket, the only indicator she’d been planning this the whole time, and handed it over.

Sonya opened the box carefully, and sitting on the pillow, there was a thumb sized Magen David. The star was swirled with gold and onyx, reminiscent of something from Sonya’s old life. 

“This looks just like my old pendant,” she declared. “The one from my mother, from the pawn shop in Tbilisi.” Her eyes moistened and she rubbed at them with her free hand. She wasn’t sure Lorna remembered, but she must have, to give such a thoughtful gift.

Lorna smiled wider. “It _is_ your old pendant.”

Sonya’s eyes widened. “But that was destroyed. It was unrecognizable.” She shook her head in wonder. “How did you…?”

Lorna wiggled her fingers and a green haze flipped between them. “I have ways.”

Reverently, Sonya unclasped the necklace and placed it around her neck. “This is the best. _You_ are the best.” She threw her arms around Lorna.

Lorna laughed, kissing her head and squeezing her tight. “I love you too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those curious, Tbilisi is the capital of Georgia. Elena Satine is Georgian, and I have a headcanon that Sonya's mother was a Jewish mutant fleeing persecution who stowed away to the US in the late 1970s.  
> I know it's totally nowhere near Chanukah, but it was a cute idea I just couldn't pass up. I mean, Magneto's daughter celebrating Chanukah with her girlfriend? How great is that?  
> I'm always in the mood for some cute wintertime sapphic girls, and I hope you are too!
> 
> (Also, thank you for all the lovely requests, but I'm going to close my request box now because I think I'm good for the time being. I'll let you all know if something changes!)
> 
> Thanks to MTL17 for inspiring this ficlet!


	15. Kiss on the back - John/Marcos

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fluffy John/Marcos, set two and a half years prior to the show, a little while after the formation of the MU and Marcos joining.

“You’ve got super strength, so obviously that means you should put it to use for a massage.”

“That’s not exactly…” John trailed off with a sigh, giving in to Marcos’ pleading look. “Fine.”

“I have had a very trying week and I think I deserve this.” Marcos feigned affectation, but his jovial smile broke through. 

“We’ve done practically everything together this week.”

“So I’m sure you’ll agree it was tiring, even for a superhuman like you.”

John rolled his eyes, but he smiled fondly. “You really are something,” he commented, guiding Marcos over to their shared mattress. “Shirt off.”

Marcos tossed a glance over his shoulder. “I love it when you take control,” he teased.

“Do you want the massage or not?”

“Yes, sir.” 

John rolled his eyes again and pushed Marcos down onto the bed, being just a little rougher than he had to be. He was rewarded with the tiniest groan, and he had to admit that there were benefits to this.

“Be honest,” he said as he began to knead Marcos’ muscles. “Are you only with me because I do this?”

“I am dating you for many reasons, John,” Marcos replied between gasps and groans. “This is one of them.” His eyes were screwed shut and John wasn’t sure which was stronger, his discomfort or his relief.

John laughed. “You really are pretty tense.” 

“Can you blame me?” Marcos grunted. “Carmen was - not happy I left. And I’ve been watching my back ever since.”

“I have also been watching your back.” John moved his hands lower, more towards Marcos’ waist. “You’re not on your own anymore.”

“I know, and I thank you for it.” Marcos gave him a grimace. “But this? This is my favorite kind of ‘you watching my back.’”

John rolled his eyes and dug his fingers in harder, earning him another wince and a pleased little whine. 

“Can you” - Marcos gasped - “Can you do that - that thing?”

“That thing?” John lifted an eyebrow, but he knew full well what Marcos was asking for. 

Marcos couldn’t keep his eyes open to look at John. “Please.”

With a soft smile, John leaned over and placed a feather-light kiss on the back of Marcos’ neck, then another just below it, working his way down the spine. Marcos practically purred under his touch.

He placed a final kiss above the waistband of Marcos’ jeans, and then laid down beside him, tossing an arm over his waist. “Better?” John asked.

“Absolutely.” Marcos turned his face to look at his boyfriend, grinning. “This is why you’re the best.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sometimes I wonder what would've happened if Marcos fell in love with John instead of Lorna when he joined the Underground. Here is one such musing.  
> I'm going to try and get back on this fic challenge and update a little more regularly, but we'll see what school allows.   
> Hope you enjoyed!


	16. New Year’s kiss - Lauren/Wes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Takes place a few months after season 1, in the new hideout. Some fluffy Wes/Lauren.

“So how do you know what’s happening, right now, in New York City?” Lauren asked curiously.

Wes grinned. “I definitely don’t. It’s just a pretty view, and when that clock right there” - he pointed to an old analog on the wall - “hits midnight, then we’re dropping this glowing orb.”

Taking his hand, Lauren laughed. “It's good enough.”

“More fun this way.” He put his arm around her shoulders, pulling her close. 

All Lauren was wearing was a tank top and jeans, leaving her arms bare to the cool breeze that filtered in through the open window, but it had been an unseasonably warm winter so she didn't mind. Besides, Wes was plenty warm - boy was practically a space heater. She snuggled closer, enjoying momentary peace in the unfinished top floor of the new headquarters for the Underground. 

“It’s nice to have some quiet,” she said, stretching her back. “I feel like all anyone has been doing these days is fighting and training and rescuing and arguing.” 

The last part was about her and her parents specifically; ever since Andy had left, things had been tense, and Lauren refused to be treated like a child anymore, much to their chagrin. She was only eighteen, but she was also a mutant and a fugitive and a budding leader of what was left of the Mutant Underground.

Wes squeezed her shoulders, feeling her grow tense. “Hey, now. Don’t think about that.”

She exhaled. “Yeah. I know.” 

“Tonight” - he waved a hand in front of him - “is for beauty and rebirth and all that stuff, whatever a New Year is supposed to symbolize. I dunno, I never made it that far in English class.” He gave Lauren a sideways grin, and she couldn’t help but smile back.

She leaned into him, thanking the Universe that at least she had this spot of light in her life. “That’s pretty much it,” she replied, and he smiled even wider.

“Nice.” The clocked ticked steadily closer to midnight. “Do you make resolutions?” Wes asked.

“Not since I was little,” she confessed. “It never seemed...reasonable.”

He gave her that grin again and her heart melted. “Well, I’ve got one I know I can keep. If you want me around, I’ll be around, as much as I can.”

With that, he pulled her into a show-stopping kiss. His fingers snapped and silent fireworks began to fall around them, bright enough she could see them through closed eyes. She gave herself fully to the moment, allowing it to chase away all the thoughts of the badness. 

“Happy New Year,” Wes whispered when they pulled apart, and she answered in kind. 

To be happy for a moment is to be happy for eternity if you admit that the moment is all you have.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wholesome  
> I want some more Wes this season. I miss my boy. Where is he.  
> I love you all and I love your feedback!


	17. Needing to kiss to hide from bad guys - Caitlin/Marcos

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set in the interim between Season one and Season two. Marcos and Caitlin are hunting a lead when things go sideways and they need to escape. Marcos/Caitlin.

To meet an informant at a bar these days was a massive risk, and if the person hadn’t said all the right words - namely, “I know where Lorna Dane is” - Marcos would never, ever have gone. 

The others had given up on her, but Caitlin wanted her son back and Marcos wanted Lorna back, and Andy, and his unborn kid, so here they were doing something ridiculously stupid. It was the newest lead on a trail of dead ends, but they were convinced that if they could just _find_ them, they’d be able to bring their loved ones home.

“It’s two in the afternoon,” he commented dryly as Caitlin ordered two beers, somehow knowing exactly what to get him. 

“It’s five o’clock somewhere,” she said flippantly, in the silly mom-ish manner Marcos had grown to love, but her shrug betrayed the tension she felt. “These days, it’s never too early.” Her hair was honey blonde now, dyed to confuse the lawmen that still seemed to have their pictures up everywhere, even though they were supposed to be dead, and it rippled over her shoulders as she moved, reaching for her drink from the bartender. 

He took the newly opened bottle and tilted it in her direction to agree, then took a long sip. It was cheap and watery, but he hadn’t expected anything better. Caitlin, on the other hand, seemed to have no problem with it, taking several sips in quick succession. 

Laughing fondly, he felt himself relax a little bit. If he pretended, the world wasn’t at stake and he was just at a bar with one of the women he loved - not that he’d had a chance to tell Caitlin he loved her, yet, but he was pretty sure it’d be ok with her and Reed because he’d definitely heard them say the word ‘polyamory’ out loud in a pretty positive light, and if you didn’t take the shot, you had no chance -

“Marcos,” Caitlin hissed, snapping him out of his rapidly derailing train of thought. “Sentinel Service Agents.” She gestured at her pocket radio, one she kept tapped in to the Sentinel feed at all times, and he could hear the chatter about their bar. 

_“Two officers here, as suggested. Heading in shortly.”_

Marcos was up in an instant, beer bottle forgotten. He grabbed her hand. “Out the back,” he directed, dragging her along towards the bathrooms, where he was pretty sure there would be an exit.

There wasn’t. He cursed the shitty building plans he’d managed to scope beforehand and froze, trying to recalculate. 

“We don’t have time. Come on!” Caitlin dragged him by the hand into the men’s room, which was, blessedly, very deserted. 

Marcos raised an eyebrow. “There are no windows in here and they will definitely check.”

“Do you trust me?” she asked, and when he nodded, she ripped open her button-down shirt, short-circuiting his brain for a hot second. “Good. Put your hands on my waist, shove me into the wall, and pretend I’m Lorna.”

When he didn’t move fast enough, she dragged his hands over herself, and fell backwards. Her head hit the wall with a nasty sound, but he didn’t even have time to ask if she was okay, because her mouth was on his mouth and then she was pushing his head towards her neck. He obliged, tangling a hand in her hair, and figured he might as well make the best of it in case he never got this opportunity again. There was no pretending necessary.

The door crashed open, but he didn’t stop right away. He wasn’t sure if the tiny moan she let out was genuine or if it was for the benefit of the agents who had just invaded their bathroom. 

He pulled away, slightly dazed. “Can I help you, gentlemen?” he asked breathlessly, as casual as he could.

The older one looked at them judgmentally. “This is a public place.”

Caitlin gave her best nervous giggle. “Oh, I know, we just-” She giggled again, anxiously buttoning her shirt. “Please don’t - We’ll just be going.”

The younger man smirked at her like she was a piece of meat, and it took all Marcos had not to incinerate the fucker right there. “Don’t let us stop you.”

“Let’s go, sweetheart.” Marcos put his arm around her in what he hoped was a genuine, possessive manner. “We can finish up at home.”

As he left the bathroom, he heard the older officer mutter something about disgusting kids. 

Caitlin laughed under her breath. “Been awhile since anyone called me a kid,” she commented, pushing open the door.

“Making out half-naked in a bar bathroom makes it real hard for people to believe you’re over forty,” Marcos teased. He hadn’t taken his arm from around her, and probably wouldn’t til they reached the car. 

She flushed violently in response. “Sorry about that,” she mumbled. “It’s just...I didn’t figure they’d look at us too closely in a situation like that. And the fake couple thing has worked before.”

“We clearly make a damn good one.” He squeezed her. “You have nothing to apologize for, seeing as you almost definitely just saved our lives there.”

She laughed. “Thank you, Marcos.” She slid into the passenger seat. “Now let’s get the hell out of here before they figure it out.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was probably by far my favorite one to write so far. I love this couple, I really do, and I love when they fake it, too. I hope we get to see more of them this season.  
> I love to hear what you think! Thanks to everyone for the kind words.


	18. Surprised kiss - Caitlin/Lorna

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Takes place post Season One, but in a timeline where Lorna and Andy never left. Caitlin helps Lorna deliver the baby. Caitlin/Lorna fluff, with background Reed/Caitlin/Lorna/Marcos.

Caitlin had never delivered a baby before. She was not that kind of nurse. 

She had, however, borne two kids of her own into the world, and watched every episode of the first six seasons of “Call the Midwife” - however accurate a BBC drama could be trusted to be - so she wasn’t completely unsure how to do these things. 

“Breathe, Lorna,” she reminded calmly. “You haven’t inhaled in the last minute and a half.”

“I’m a little...preoccupied,” Lorna hissed out. “God, it fucking _hurts_.”

Caitlin had given birth to Lauren without epidural, so she could empathize. She wished they had better drugs for Lorna. They had a couple opioids laying around that could work in a pinch, but those were in case of any emergency, and they definitely wouldn’t be getting any more for at least a month.

All the metal in the room was shaking, as if in response to Caitlin’s thought of emergencies. 

“We - that needs to be _gone_!” Caitlin realized with a start, cursing herself for not thinking of it sooner. “Marcos, Lauren, get the metal out of here. _Now!_ ” she shouted when they didn’t move fast enough. 

They complied, startled, and started scooping up everything they could. 

They were about 15 feet underground, in a bunker that’d been left abandoned when the “End of Days” mutant owner had been captured by Sentinel Services. Said Mutant had been incredibly afraid of Magneto back in the day, which was useful because nothing was made of metal, but it hadn’t prevented the new occupants from bringing in their own metal.

“Out, out, everything out!” Caitlin demanded, ducking as Andy’s handheld game flew from his hands and at her head. “Andy, pay attention and _help me_!”

“What do I do?” he asked, a look a panic in his eyes, and Caitlin realized he was probably using the game to cope. Oh well, he could cope later; there was a baby to be delivered here.

“Hold her hand; you’re her favorite. Hold her hand and count her breathing or beatbox or _something_ , just make her freak out less.”

“I am _not_ freaking out,” Lorna hissed, glaring at Caitlin, but she clutched Andy’s hand for dear life when he offered it. To his merit, he barely winced, and Caitlin was immensely proud of her son.

Caitlin gave it another check. “You’re almost dilated enough. Just try to relax.”

“Caitlin, I am giving birth in an underground bunker. _Relaxing_ is not the word I’d use,” Lorna griped.

“Oh, I’m sorry, should I have Marcos burn some incense and play a youtube meditation track?” Caitlin snarked right back. “We’ve got what we’ve got, and this baby is coming one way or another.”

Lorna rewarded her with a small grin, and Cait ignored the fluttering in her stomach. Now was not the time for feelings. 

Marcos returned, devoid of metal, including the ring Lorna had made for him months ago in lieu of an official marriage ceremony. He had to understand the intensity of the situation, because he never went anywhere without that thing. Caitlin smiled fondly, making reassuring eye-contact as Marcos grabbed Lorna’s other hand. 

“You’re doing great, babe,” he encouraged, beaming. 

Besides her own husband, Caitlin had never seen a man more excited to be a father. 

“I see the head,” Caitlin declared. “Now. Now is the time to _push_.”

Lorna dutifully obeyed. Caitlin wasn’t sure how long it took for the screaming to start, but when it did, Andy and Marcos both jumped about a food in the air, exchanging glances. 

“This is normal,” Caitlin reassured them. They looked at her doubtfully. “Andrew Strucker, I was in labor with you for fifteen hours before the doctors decided on a C-section. I know what’s normal.”

“Ew.” Andy winced.

She rolled her eyes. “It’s just birth, Andy. It’s literally what’s happening now.”

“I’m trying not to think about that,” he mumbled, looking queasy. He averted his eyes, counting flecks of god-knows-what on the ceiling.

Lauren returned with a tray of water bottles and granola bars. “It seemed helpful,” she said, offering the tray awkwardly. “Dad said he got hungry when Mom was in labor.” Caitlin nearly laughed; Reed had decided to ‘stay out of the way’ but he was still doing his best to help.

Marcos accepted the water bottle gratefully and scarfed down the granola bar. 

“Can Lorna drink?” he asked, staring at Caitlin. 

She thought for a second. “I mean, they only let me eat ice chips, but I think I read somewhere that that’s based on bad science. Water at least should be fine.” She prayed this wasn’t going to ruin the whole labor. Had she known her life was going to come to this, she would’ve spoken more clinically with her OB-GYN back in the day.

Lorna groaned like the world was ending, and chugged the water bottle gratefully. She maybe shouldn’t have been drinking that _fast_ , but it’s not like Caitlin could stop it.

She gave another check. “I can see the head!” she encouraged, though it was a slight exaggeration of the flash of crown. “Push, Lorna, push!”

“I’m _trying_ , for _fuck’s_ sake!” Lorna growled, then let out another scream. “ _Caitlin!_ ”

“Why would you do this twice?” Marcos asked, brow creasing. He looked horrified, though not sick. More...sympathetic.

“I mean, I certainly got more than I paid for,” Cait replied, beaming at her children. “Lauren, towels.”

Lauren complied wordlessly, getting ready for the emergence of the newest Mutant Underground member. The progress was rapid now, and Caitlin has started praying. Andy handed her the scissors without her even asking, which she’d dunked in isopropyl for lack of a better disinfectant, and when the baby popped out, she cut the cord and handed her off to Lauren. 

The room was deathly still and silent until Lorna asked, voice strangled, “ _Why isn’t she crying?_ ”

It wasn’t the lack of cries so much as the lack of breath that was concerning Caitlin. “Andy, suction,” she demanded, and he passed her off the tool she’d acquired on their last supply trip. She hadn’t thought they would use it quite so soon, she reflected, as she cleared out the nasal passages, and more for boogers than for birth fluids.

The baby was shaking, trying her hardest, and as Lauren gave the chest a gentle rub, she took a breath and screamed. 

Marcos was crying. Lorna was also crying, though with far more dignity, and she took the baby in her arms and rocked her and crooned. “Hi Aurora,” she said in the most sing-song voice she’d ever used. “I’m your Ima. And that’s your padre.” She let Marcos hold the baby for a second, grabbing Caitlin’s arm as the woman moved to give them peace. 

“Thank you,” she whispered, and then yanked Caitlin down into a grateful kiss.

Caitlin startled, surprised, but she returned the kiss. They hadn’t exactly...discussed all of this, yet, but Marcos was grinning when she pulled away, flushed.

“And that,” he crooned to baby Aurora, “that woman is gonna take care of you too. Just like Ima and Papá. An Ima, a Papá, a Mommy, and a Daddy.” He grinned, and Caitlin felt herself choking up. She pressed a hand to her mouth. “Aren’t you a lucky baby?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So many questions for Google. "How long is a normal labor" "What happens if a baby isn't breathing" "How many seasons of Call the Midwife"  
> But it was worth it. This was a really fun chapter to write, and because it is MY fic, I get to call her baby Aurora if I want to, which I do. Also I love this OT4 and all their domestic feels and I want them all together again this season, come on writers.  
> Note: Ima is the hebrew word for Mother. I figured since baby Aurora's got two moms, she needs different names for both.  
> Thank you for your readership!


	19. Sad kiss - Andy & Lorna

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set between seasons, the Hellfire Club is out raising a little - well, Hell. Things do not go super well. Andy & Lorna.

“Lorna!” He was screaming, wordless, only the vague syllables of her name making their way out of his mouth. He watched her go down and he tried to cross the battlefield, get to her, but it felt like every second spanned several years and he was never getting any closer. 

Then there was something like a snap and the sound came back and he was at her side. 

“Lorna, hey, come on.” He dropped to his knees, shaking her lightly, but her eyes stayed firmly shut. There was a trickle of red blood along her green hairline, stemming from a small cut, and it gave a dramatic color contrast that looked all kinds of wrong. 

He groaned, pulling her as best he could off to the side of the battlefield. The Frosts were still going, making puppets of the Sentinel Service Agents. Their allies were going too, but all Andy could think about was Lorna. 

She was the only thing that mattered to him. The minute he'd joined the Hellfire Club, the special attention from Esme had stopped. The others had all been a little afraid of him - understandably, really, because at this point Andy was a little afraid of himself sometimes. His family was all back with the Underground. 

Lorna was all he had. Lorna, and the promise of an infant who he already loved and for whom he already intended to be the best Uncle ever. 

At that thought, he glanced at her stomach. It seemed ok. The biggest struggle was the head wound, and Andy tried to think back to the first aid training his mother had made them learn.

He didn’t have bandages, because that would be way too prepared of him, but he did have a bag with a flask in it. He’d always felt a little guilty about it, and every time he sipped the terrible tasting liquid he knew his mom was disappointed, way off in the distance, but now it’d come in handy. He hoped. He thought he remembered that alcohol was a disinfectant, and hoped whiskey counted.

Carefully, he ripped off a portion of his t-shirt off and soaked it in alcohol, then dabbed at Lorna’s wound. 

Her face twitched and he hoped that meant she could feel the pain, that she was close to waking up. If she didn’t…he thought of all the things he’d have to cope with alone, all the nights he’d spent in her room just talking and laughing that would suddenly disappear. He thought of the way she shoplifted candy from gas stations and they split it, how she was his partner for everything. He thought of the way she never told anyone that he woke up crying some nights, and he’d moved into her room because he couldn’t stand to be alone. 

Like the older sister he’d always wished Lauren could be - a little less uptight, a little more fun-loving, a little more understanding of who he was and what he needed. 

_(And then he felt guilty, because it wasn’t Lauren’s fault, but the bond he had with Lorna was special.)_

He thought about how the promise of a baby was all that kept him going some days, and how if Lorna died, any hope of a little Dane-Diaz child died too.

His heart felt like it’d burst out of his chest, and he felt so small and lonely and crushingly sad. 

“I’m so sorry, Lorna,” he breathed, pressing a kiss to her cheek. 

“Not dead yet, kid,” she replied, groaning, and forced open her eyes. “Though I appreciate the concern.”

“Lorna!” All of a sudden, he couldn’t hold back the tears and he let them trickle, casual and slow and totally a little badass, as he buried his face in her shoulder, pulling her into a tight hug. “God, you fucking scared me.”

“Watch...your mouth, kid,” she teased, sounding more and more like herself, though still clearly in pain.

The sounds of battle had quieted around them and Andy felt like he could relax. “Can you stand?” he asked as she pushed herself up on her elbow.

She shook her head, and he could practically see her fighting for consciousness.

He was up on his feet in a second. “I’ll go get Esme.” He patted her shoulder, hoping it was comforting. “We’re gonna get you home.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Listen. Listen. They're so great together. Andy cares about her so much, and vice versa. He wouldn't know how to cope without Lorna Dane in his life, and I stand by that assertion.   
> Hope you all enjoyed!


	20. Jealous kiss - Sonya/John, background Sonya/Clarice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mid-Season One. Sonya reflects on what her life has become. Angsty Sonya/John, mild background Sonya/Clarice.

Sonya considered herself a very reasonable woman. When John had suggested that it was a bad idea to be together, she’d accepted it, because he was a leader and that was more important to him than any person could ever be. 

So Sonya had thought, until Clarice had come along. 

All of a sudden, she saw Johnny slipping away from her, paying more attention to Clarice, and it _bothered_ her. Made her insides go all squirmy. 

It made her realize that maybe it was never about the job at all - after all, it was no easier now than it had been years ago, especially not with the Strucker children and Lorna and everything that had happened. Maybe it wasn’t about the job.

Maybe it was just that she wasn’t enough to make him choose her. 

And she didn’t even want to start to think about the feeling in her stomach, even when she was alone with Clarice. It’s not that she wasn’t comfortable with being pansexual, it was just that she wasn’t comfortable being in love with a girl that clearly hated her and undoubtedly wanted to date her sorta-boyfriend.

When he wasn’t with Clarice (and Marcos, and Lorna, but always always Clarice), he was always working. Until she was 27, Sonya hadn’t realized it was possible to be jealous of a stack of papers, but here she was. 

It felt like all of her was made of twisted, tightening vines, wrapping in on herself and choking and withering from a lack of attention.

“Baby, it’s time to go to bed,” she declared, coming up behind him, wrapping her arms around his shoulders, kissing her way down his ear and his neck. Once upon a time, that would’ve distracted him immediately, pulled his attention over to where it belonged (on her). But now, he just scrunched his brow and hunched over a little further. 

“The plan,” he began. “I should talk to Marcos - Clarice -”

At the mention of the other woman, Sonya felt the vines twist, and she took John’s face in both of her hands and she kissed him, kissed him until he finally melted, the way he used to, kissed her back and almost felt like she meant it.

“No,” Sonya said, letting her shirt’s neck fall off her shoulders and expose a swathe of bare skin. She smiled invitingly. “Bed time.”

John sighed, rubbed his hands into his eyes, and nodded. “I am tired,” he admitted, standing up and not even sparing her neck a glance. 

Sonya trailed forlornly after him. These days she was jealous of everything; but most of all, she was jealous of the woman she was a year ago, the woman who could actually take John’s heart and keep it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's some sad sad Sonya-centric fic to distract us all from the winter blues and Finals panic. I love my gal and even though she wasn't perfect, she deserved more love than she got.   
> Hope y'all enjoyed! I love to hear what you think.


	21. Kiss of life - Caitlin & Andy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Andy gets hurt, and Lorna enlists some help. Set sometime ambiguously post-season 1. The kiss is Andy & Caitlin but the main relationship is Caitlin & Lorna.

Caitlin had envisioned seeing her son again thousands of times. Sometimes he was older, but mostly he wasn’t; she always hoped she would see him sooner rather than later. 

What she had not expected was to see him only a few months after he had left, bursting through the doors of their new hideout and carried by a screaming Lorna Dane, passed out cold and bleeding.

“Fix him!” Lorna demanded, features twisted into a mask of panic and pain. 

Caitlin, on the other hand, made her face perfectly neutral. On the inside, she was full of rage - how dare this woman take her son and then act _surprised_ when he got hurt?

But this was more important than whatever roiling emotions Caitlin held. She led Lorna over to the small room John had given her to use as an infirmary. A sparse room, more of an office, with just a chair - they’d promised her a table for patients, but it hadn’t come yet.

She would make do. “Get him over here. On the desk,” she demanded brusquely, pushing everything off of her desk. Luckily it was just papers and books, nothing fragile, but she’d enlist Marcos and Reed to help her clean it up later. 

Andy’s face was paler than she’d ever seen, pinched and agitated. His forehead was sweating. His hair was bleached, some detached part of her brain registered, and she wasn’t sure if she approved, but that wasn’t the important thing right now. 

“What happened?” Caitlin demanded, opening her drawer to smother her hands in sanitizer. 

“Those stupid - fucking - spider - robot things - _fuck _,” Lorna forced out, unable to find the words. “Fuck, Caitlin, I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, he tried to fight it off and so did I but it -” she broke off, choking back a hysterical sob.__

__“It’s alright. He’s gonna be fine.” Caitlin gritted her teeth, tearing off her son’s shredded t-shirt. His chest and stomach had four bloody gashes, like something had grabbed at him._ _

__Of course Lauren had to be out at a time like this. Of course everyone who could function as her assistant had to be out._ _

__She looked at Lorna. It’d have to do._ _

__“Can you control the blood?” she asked._ _

__Lorna stared blankly. “What?”_ _

__“Blood, it’s got iron in it. Can you control it?” Caitlin knew that it was a longshot, that the iron in blood was bound to hemoglobin and didn’t have the same kind of magnetic potential as a bar of iron. But Lorna didn’t know that, and Lorna was damn powerful, and it was worth a shot._ _

__“Oh, uh. Yeah, I can try.”_ _

__“Well, try _faster_ ,” Caitlin demanded, ripping open her med kit. _ _

__Incrementally, miraculously, the blood began to slow at a frustrating pace. But it was better than nothing, better than Caitlin had expected. She cleaned up the cuts with alcohol wipes, giving a sigh of relief, Andy twitching in his unconsciousness._ _

__She turned to the task at hand. “Why are you here?” Caitlin asked suddenly. They disappear for months only to show up back wounded with no explanation? She threaded the needle and started stitching up the worst of the gashes._ _

__Lorna scowled. “I wouldn’t be if I had other options,” she said through gritted teeth. “But you tell Andy where you are on that game he likes, and Reeva and the Frosts wouldn’t -” She bit off whatever was going to be the last part of that sentence, and Caitlin remembered the two of them weren’t really friends anymore. If they’d even ever been. Of course Lorna wouldn’t want to confide in her like that._ _

__“It was just the best option,” Lorna finished, but her eyes were haunted and Caitlin wondered who the Inner Circle was willing to let die for their ideology. Andy? The baby? Lorna herself?_ _

__“Okay.” Caitlin nodded, shrugged, and pulled the stitches through. “Well, I’m glad you’re here. I’m glad my son’s not dead.”_ _

__“Me too,” Lorna gritted out. “Trust me.”_ _

__It took approximately 34 messy stitches, but she got him patched up. Lorna looked nearly as pale as Andy on the table, almost swaying from exertion, and Caitlin mopped up the blood with a rag. She pushed her sweat matted hair out of her face, looking up at Lorna, and caught the other woman looking away quickly, an unreadable curl to her lip._ _

__“Will he be ok?” Lorna asked quietly, and Caitlin shrugged helplessly._ _

__“I’ve done all I can,” she replied, and thus began the waiting game. She wrapped him in a blanket, unwilling to move him, and stared at his face, petting his hair, while Lorna’s hands twitched at her sides._ _

__“He’s mine too,” Lorna blurted out suddenly, jutting her chin at Caitlin defiantly. The metal fixings in the room gave an awkward wobble._ _

__Caitlin blinked. She didn’t know what to make of that. “I’m sorry?” She raised an eyebrow._ _

__“You’re looking at me like - like I stole him. Like this is my fault. Like I _took your son_ ,” Lorna spat. “But he left on his own. He’s like the kid brother I never had. You think I want to see him hurt? This kills me just as much as it kills you. You _blame_ me and it’s not my _fault_.”_ _

__Caitlin pursed her lips. He was just a child - and how could Lorna really care about him like she claimed to? She was just an older mutant who’d offered him the kind of world he wanted._ _

__And yet...the way she looked at Andy. It wasn’t too far off from the same worried look Lauren wore whenever he was sick and she was trying to play it cool. Caitlin saw a flash of a future where they’d stayed, where Lauren and Lorna leaned against each other in anxious waiting if Andy got hurt, where Lorna teased Andy and taught him to throw knives - oh god forbid - and all sorts of things._ _

__It wasn’t all bad. And maybe it wasn’t impossible, either._ _

__“If you really care like you say you do, stay,” Caitlin challenged. “He needs to be with his family.”_ _

__“That’s his decision,” Lorna replied tightly, but she gave a tiny nod of her head._ _

__Caitlin rubbed Andy’s forehead and leaned down gently to press a kiss against it, lingering the way she used to when he was small. “C’mon, bud,” she whispered. “Come back to me.” She glanced at Lorna. “To us.”_ _

__His eyes opened blearily. “Mom?”_ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Medical Science on this is shaky, but the feelings are real. I watched a ten minute video on whether blood was magnetic and how magnetic just to make sure this was "realistic" and this is the result.   
> I think there's a lot of potential here. The friction is real, but there's a deep care between them, and a shared bond with Andy. I hope they get to interact more this season.  
> Hope you enjoyed it! Sorry for my absence this past little while; I can't promise I'll post any faster, but I do promise I'm doing my best.


	22. New Year’s Kiss - Lorna/Marcos/John

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marcos' first New Year's Eve with the Underground, spent with his two favorite people. Getting together Lorna/Marcos/John fic.

Marcos liked the snow. He ran hot, so the cold didn’t bother him as much as it might one of his siblings - but then, he’d adjusted to the American climate awhile ago, which wasn’t so different from Colombia anyway.

Still, the crispness of the air and the few inches of snow on the ground made him feel a certain way he never had as a child, even on the handful occasions it had snowed there too. Maybe it was because of the way he was able to sit on the roof and dance his light off the snow banks without fear, watching them melt away in tiny spots, or the way the chill reminded him he was still breathing, his fingers tingling just a little as they couldn’t figure out whether they were hot or cold or something else entirely.

“There you are.”

John moved so softly sometimes he managed to sneak up even on Marcos, hypervigilant as the man was. Marcos startled and a beam of light swung errantly, singing the base of a tree at the edge of their clearing.

“That’ll leave a mark,” John quipped dryly. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you.”

“You didn’t scare me,” Marcos replied instantly, a bit too much bite in his words, and he tried to remind himself that this wasn’t the Cartel. He didn’t have to pretend to be...fearless, or immortal, or whatever Carmen and her father wanted him to be at that moment.

“Whatever.” John shrugged. He never took anything Marcos said too personally, which was good, because Marcos said a lot of poorly-considered and over-emotional things. He’d only ever been allowed to be angry, but he was working on other emotions.

He swallowed and steadied his tone. “Did you want something?” He tried not to stare at John, the way the man’s long hair fell perfectly around his face - God, Marcos loved it when he left it loose - or the way he looked good in everything he wore. Marcos had been suckerpunched for less than a too-long look before, by men who took his interest as insult, and he didn’t exactly want to be on the receiving end of John’s superhuman strength.

Lorna swore John was chill, but when Marcos asked if the man was queer, she just kind of shrugged helplessly. While she herself was a proud bisexual and never shut up about it, including all the pun possibilities relating to bisexuality and bipolar disorder and bipolar magnets, John didn’t talk about his interests in any gender.

“He’s chill,” she’d just repeat again.

Marcos didn’t want to find out how shallow that chill might be.

“Yeah, Lorna and I were making hot chocolate for New Year’s Eve. We figured you might want some,” John offered, almost tentatively.

New Year’s Eve. Tomorrow morning, it would begin a year where Marcos had never been in the cartel, a year where he had a family for the first time in a long time. He shivered.

It’d been months since Marcos had joined the Underground, but he knew he still didn’t seem like the bonding type. “That sounds great.” He nodded slightly. “Thank you,” he added, just to make sure John knew he appreciated being included. His weird new relationship with Lorna cemented him as a fixture, and he was basically almost a leader even in such a short time. It made sense to spend some more time together.

Even if being around Lorna and John at the same time made Marcos feel like his brain was going to melt.

John hesitated, uncharacteristic, holding out his hand and then dropping it. He turned to head back into the building, and Marcos bit back a question of what the other man had been about to say. John had a right to his secrets, just as Marcos had a right to his own.

\-----

“I don’t do monogamy,” Lorna had grandly declared the first time she and Marcos had kissed.

Marcos had shrugged. “Whatever.” Carmen had always slept with whoever the hell she wanted, too. It wasn’t anything new to him.

“No, I mean, I’m polyamorous.” She’d pulled his head back from where he’d been attempting to bite at her neck. “Like I don’t - if you want to date me and only me, and you want me to be with you and only you, I can’t do that. I don’t want to do this if you’re going to expect something I can’t give you.”

“I -” He hadn’t known what to say. “What?”

“This is me saying, if you want to be with me, I give you full permission to be with other people too, but I need the same from you, or this won’t work.”

“Permission?” Carmen had never...asked. She just did. He was expected to be ok with it, it was just by miracle of Marcos’ disposition that he was. But it’d always bugged him that if he’d done the same, she’d have ruined his life. “I mean, yeah, sure, whatever. But I get to - to be with other people too?”

She’d looked at him with a mixture of confusion, awe, and pity, speechless for a second. “I’m sorry,” she had said, “it just...this conversation never goes this well. But also what the fuck dude, yeah of course you get to be with other people too, that’s what polyamory is. Otherwise it’d be unfair and unequal and...not a relationship. So yeah, you could be with whoever else you want. Like...anyone. Anyone from the Underground, even John.” She’d just thrown it out there, casually, lazily, but...

She’d been so scarily correct.

“Huh.” And then he had kissed her again, more passionately and more openly than he’d ever kissed anyone. He remembered feeling...at peace. There was no underlying tension, no worries. Just...bliss.

She’d pushed him back again, laughing. She had the most beautiful laugh. “So is that a yes? You’re cool with it?” she’d asked, toying with the collar of his shirt.

“I mean, of course. You already told me you were bisexual.” He’d pressed a light kiss to her jaw. “I expected this.”

“Bisexual people aren’t always polyamorous,” she had replied. “It’s a stereotype.”

He’d stopped. “But...men and women...how could you pick just one forever? Wouldn’t you miss having a boyfriend if you had a girlfriend, or vice versa?”

“Well, I also like people who are neither,” Lorna had corrected absently. “And I mean...personally, I couldn’t. I definitely want to have multiple sweethearts of many genders. But there are some people who don’t feel that sort of...missing out. When they find the one person they wanna be with, it doesn’t much matter to them, and they choose to be with that person and only that person.”

“Huh,” Marcos had said again, because he hadn’t had anything better to say, kissing her all up and down her neck. “What did you say that was called?”

“Polyamorous?” she’d asked, and he’d nodded.

“I think I’m that too.”

Her eyes had lit up. “Oh. Oh thank god.” And then she’d pulled their heads together and their mouths had crashed against each other and it was perfect.

\-----

Being with her hadn’t gotten any less electric, and he felt his heart skip several beats as John led him into the tiny kitchen area and she gave him a two-fingered wave. He tried for a smile that probably came out almost like a grimace, and she pressed a hand over her mouth to keep from laughing.

She knew, without a doubt.

“I added rum and it makes it five times better,” she said by way of greeting, holding up a mug that was barely visible under the weight of the whipped cream over it. She passed another mug to Marcos. “I added it to yours too. John, you want some?”

She’d also put cinnamon on his whipped cream, which he’d mentioned off-hand that he enjoyed exactly once a month and a half ago. She’d probably used the last of whatever they had in reserve.

He gave her a shy smile and she returned it with Mega Wattage. John looked between the two of them and smiled, too.

“Sure, hit me.” John picked up a mug - currently devoid of whipped cream - and Lorna tipped the bottle of rum in. “Whoa, whoa, that’s fine! Lorna, are you _trying_ to get me wasted?” He laughed.

Marcos appraised the sheer mass of John’s body and wondered just how much alcohol it’d take to actually get him drunk. John caught him staring - which was for science, this time, Marcos would swear - and quirked an eyebrow. Marcos felt his face heating up and glanced away quickly, but not before seeing another smile from John.

“Whipped cream?” Lorna offered.

“I prefer Marshmallows, if we have,” John replied, rifling through a cabinet. “Or...not. Okay, whipped cream is fine.”

Lorna added an equally generous helping of whipped cream to John’s mug, causing him to roll his eyes. He took a big sip and of course ended up with some on his nose. Lorna was wheezing, doubled over and leaning against the counter, and Marcos reached out to help him.

“Here,” he offered, wiping the cream off with his finger. This left Marcos with a large dollop of whipped cream on his finger, which he promptly stuck in his mouth without thinking.

Lorna snorted and John was looking at him with some sort of unreadable emotion. “What?” Marcos asked self-consciously. “It’s a shame to waste.”

“Sure,” Lorna snorted again, standing up properly. She dusted off her leather jacket and took a sip of her hot chocolate, purposefully ending up with whipped cream on own nose. “My turn next?” She grinned wickedly, teasing him, daring him.

What the hell, he decided, and he brushed past John to play her game. He was a betting man - it was a fun pastime back in the Cartel - and he would bet he could win whatever she was trying to play.

He cupped her face in one hand and kissed her jaw, then over her cheek, watching in delight as her eyes shut. When he made it to her nose, he opened his mouth wide and placed it around the whipped cream, just to fuck with her. She started laughing immediately.

“Weirdo.”

“I was going to be extra seductive, but then I figured this was even better,” he replied, licking the rest of the whipped cream off her lips. “Besides, I can be both.” And then he pulled her back in for a soul-stealing kiss.

He would’ve been lying if he said he forgot John was there too, but he did find himself somewhere between not caring and wanting John to...like it, or something like that.

When he pulled away, she looked at him, head spinning, and grappled for control. She almost chased him for another kiss, but she found herself distracted by John, and Marcos followed her gaze to where the other man was awkwardly clutching the countertop, swallowing a gulp of his hot chocolate.

He’d been staring.

“John, you know you have a standing invitation,” Lorna teased, wiggling her eyebrows at him.

“I - um.” He swallowed again.

Marcos physically separated himself from Lorna, putting some distance between the three of them. “I’m sorry, man.” He stared at his boots.

“No, really, it’s fine.” John seemed to struggle to find words. “Uh - did you know - you glow? When you touch each other?” He gazed at them in wonder.

“Oh, yeah, it’s the Aurora Borealis. It’s...a magnets-and-sun thing.” Marcos scratched his head. “We think.”

“It’s beautiful,” John replied.

“Hey.” Lorna pointed to the clock on the wall. “Almost midnight. In five...four...three…”

She used her powers to yank John by his dogtags and Marcos by his necklace until they were standing face to face. Of course, had they tried to resist, it would have worked, so Marcos figured that meant something.

“Two. One.”

They stared at each other, hesitantly, until John leaned forward and closed the space between them.

Marcos, full disclosure, had never actually kissed another man. He had never made it that far. On the one hand, it wasn’t all that different from kissing Lorna - John’s lips were just as soft, though differently shaped, definitely thicker - but on the other hand, he didn’t really know if he was supposed to do anything different, how to hold his hands, whatever.

“It’s easier if you live in the moment,” Lorna had said the one time he asked about it, ahead of time.

So he tried to be in the moment, leaning in closer, feeling the warmth flow through them. He was dimly aware of the delighted chuckling coming from Lorna’s general direction.

They broke apart, starry-eyed.

“Fucking Finally!” Lorna crowed, and Marcos flipped her off.

“Happy New Year,” John breathed.

A New Year with all sorts of New Joys and New Experiences. Marcos could not wait.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Coming in with a longer-than-usual ficlet to celebrate the New Year. I hesitated for awhile trying to find the ship to do for this one, and then I thought about Marcos' first New Year's Eve, and the idea came to me, fully formed. I had so much fun writing this and I hope you all have just as much fun reading it!  
> Wishing you all a happy holiday, and much peace and happiness and good fic in the New Year! I love you all dearly; thanks for sticking by me. <3


	23. Kiss on a dare - College AU, Ambiguously One-Sided Lauren/John

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> College AU. Lauren attends her first college party - luckily, her favorite rugby player is there to make it better.

Lauren was pretty sure that John Proudstar was the hottest guy at school, and it had nothing to do with the underage drinking she was participating in. 

She hadn’t expected him to be at this party, but she supposed it made sense since he was friends with Clarice Fong, the foster sister of David Richards, a guy from Lauren’s math class who had for one reason or another invited her to this party tonight. Maybe it’s because Lauren knew Clarice? They were in the same Social Work program. 

A few of Clarice’s friends were there, probably to make David look cool and to bribe Clarice into being a little more okay with the nonsense that was happening in her apartment, since David still lived with her. But Lauren wasn’t exactly one of Clarice’s friends, more of a “newbie to the program” acquaintance who had bought a couple of her used books. 

She honestly knew John better than anyone else of Clarice’s friends, though that wasn’t saying much. She’d gone to watch a few Rugby games, at first out of interest but then also to see John, specifically. It was a fun sport, and it definitely helped that their star player was super hot. She’d even managed one or two conversations with him about it, after the games.

“He doesn’t bite.” Sonya Simonson, Clarice’s senior girlfriend, startled Lauren from her reverie. She wasn’t sure if the redhead was just absurdly quiet, or if Lauren had been so mesmerized she missed the noise. “I should know, I tried to make him.”

Lauren wanted to laugh, but she was also incredibly intimidated at being caught mooning over the guy she knew very well was Sonya’s ex-boyfriend. 

Sonya put a hand on her shoulder. “Geez, freshie, relax. I don’t bite either.” She pulled a small black object and took a puff, letting out a cloud of purple smoke. “Seems like you could use some,” she offered. 

Against her better judgement, because she didn’t even know what the stuff was, Lauren took it and inhaled. Instantly, she felt dizzy, but in a good way, and her brain was lighting on several different memories before it settled down.

“What _is_ that?” Lauren asked, slightly breathless, purple clouds popping from her mouth.

Sonya laughed. “It’s good, isn’t it? I make it myself. You won’t find any of that in stores yet.”

If Lauren remembered correctly, Sonya on a full chemistry scholarship to the university, and at the top of her program. It was kind of hilarious that she made drugs.

Lauren giggled. 

“See? You look far less terrified now.” Sonya smiled reassuringly. “I say you talk to him. I think you might be a bit young for him, but hey, who knows.” She shrugged. “The world has seen crazier couples.” She looked ruefully off to the side, and Lauren followed her gaze to see Clarice frowning in another corner. “Poor girl. Not really one for crowds.” With that, she waved her hand at Lauren and sauntered off to join her girlfriend in the corner. 

The idea of coupledom was kind of too much, but Lauren would definitely settle for a kiss. 

“Here.” Someone handed her another drink. It seemed like cola, but she still sipped warily before deciding to dump it out and pour her own drink. She knew that one was just lemonade, and it made her feel a little better. 

She sipped a little more and watched a little more, watching Lorna Dane spread over a couch and talking to Marcos Diaz, watching a Computer Science TA named Sage tapping away on her phone, watching John watch the room. 

_“Truth or dare!”_ someone shouted. 

Lauren felt her stomach fill with a mixture of dread and excitement. It was a little juvenile, but hey, a party was a party.

“That is a _great_ idea!” David materialized, seemingly out of nowhere. “Let’s do it!”

Lauren thought she heard John mumble “This is a terrible idea,” but Sonya caught him on the arm and dragged him and Clarice into the quickly forming circle. 

The circle, once formed, only included about half the party members, but that was probably for the best. Lauren felt her hands nervously clutching the hems of her denim skirt. She watched the first few rounds - “Drink this mystery drink! What football player would you hook up with? Take off your shoes and step in the ice bucket. Which professor was the worst and what would you tell them?”

And then it was Sonya’s turn to dare, and her eyes flashed wickedly, and she looked Lauren dead in the eye. “Lauren.” She was a little startled Sonya knew her name. “I dare you to kiss John.”

Lauren squeaked. “Here?”

“For a minute. In front of everyone.” Sonya grinned and Lauren was half-inclined to run from the room, half-inclined to thank Sonya for days. 

John made a face. “Lay off, Sonya, she's basically a kid. You're embarrassing her.” He crossed his arms awkwardly. “You don’t have to, Lauren.” He was staring at her very apologetically, like Sonya pulled this shit all the time. Maybe she did. They had a very weird relationship, so far as exes go. 

“I'll do it.” The words flew out of Lauren’s mouth with far more confidence than she felt. “I'm cool.”

John raised an eyebrow but nodded, stepping into the circle. Lauren stepped in to meet him, a little surprised by just how much taller he was.

He made a slight noise of curiosity or confusion or something, looking down at Lauren, and she pushed herself up onto her toes to try to be tall enough. John grabbed her waist to lift her the last bit of the way, and she grabbed his face, and they were kissing, and it was exactly as delightful as her eighteen-year-old brain had expected. 

Sonya had said a minute and Lauren was going to take full advantage of that dare, lingering in John's embrace and savoring every second. This would be a nice memory. 

They broke apart, breathing kind of heavily, and John looked down awkwardly at Lauren. “Sorry,” he said, which only made her laugh. 

“Trust me,” she replied. “You have nothing to be sorry for.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was an interesting one to write, because in regular canon, they have a far more familial relationship. That said, I could totally see Lauren having a crush on John (I mean, who wouldn't?) and I thought the college AU with the "cool senior crush" would be a fun way to explore that.  
> I wound up really liking this College AU and I may go back to it at some point, if only to explore the concept of Sonya the chemistry prodigy and drug maker and her grumpy girlfriend Clarice.  
> This one was a lot of fun! I hope you all enjoyed.


	24. Giggly kiss - Clarice/John

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set in between season one and two, in a quiet evening at home for Clarice/John. Warnings for weed references.

Peaceful moments were rare.

It was quiet, sometimes. More often than not, really. But the quiet was like a held breath. When you’d faked your own death three months prior and were now trying to lay low in a DC apartment complex, the feeling of ease was...hard to come by, to say the least.

So to feel truly at ease, completely relaxed, for once - that was priceless, to Clarice.

The weed probably helped. 

Some mutant kid they’d rescued had given it to her as thanks, and Clarice was never one to turn down free weed. John had his doubts about the ethics of accepting it - and maybe smoking it, because he looked at the stuff very suspiciously - but Clarice was a woman of the streets, and she knew a good deal when she saw one.

Which was why she was taking a bubble bath and eating a brownie she had convinced John to help her make, on the grounds that “it’s healthier to eat it than to smoke it.”

“Is it safe to get high in the bathtub?” John asked doubtfully from the doorway, crossing his arms. “Couldn’t you drown or something?”

Clarice laughed, swallowing the rest of her brownie. “I’ll be fine. Besides, I’ve got you to rescue me if anything goes wrong.” She popped her feet up from under the bubbles, wiggling her painted purple toes at her boyfriend. 

He rolled his eyes. “Uh huh. So you just expect me to stand here and watch you bathe?” The corners of his mouth were lifting in a smile, even if his tone was sarcastic.

She wiggled her eyebrows. “I don’t think you’d complain.” She pushed herself up straighter, reaching her arms out. “You could always join me.”

“I really don’t think that tub is big enough for two,” John replied, stifling a laugh and giving a longing glance to her bubble-covered collarbones. 

“Maybe not if the second is as broad as you,” Clarice mused. “That’s ok. You can come sit next to me and hold my hand.” She patted the tub beside her.

Zingo trotted into the room, glanced around, and stuck her nose right into the bubbles. She gave a small yelp and shook her head back and forth, screwing up her eyes. Then, she dashed past John and out the door. 

Clarice and John stared after their dog in silence for a second before cracking up. “An icon,” Clarice declared.

“You’re adorable,” John replied, shuffling closer to sit down next to the tub. He offered her his hand to hold. “Happy?”

“Elated,” she replied, scooping up a handful of bubbles in her free palm. Grinning mischievously, she puckered her lips like a kiss.

And then blew the bubbles right at John.

“Hey!” he protested, suddenly covered in suds. He swatted awkwardly at her with the hand she was not holding in a vice grip. “Clarice!”

All she could do was giggle at the mess of soap bubbles on his t-shirt of some heavy metal band she didn’t listen to. 

“Soooooorry,” she sing-songed, but they both knew she wasn’t, especially because she could barely stop giggling long enough to get through the word.

He rolled his eyes. “C’mere, you.” He leaned in and kissed her giggling mouth, then kissed her again and again, which only made her laugh harder. 

Peaceful moments were rare. Which meant they were cherished.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was originally meant to be published later on in the series, but after last night's episode, I thought we could all use some fluff to cheer us up. I picture Clarice to be definitely into weed but John is a boy scout and has some apprehensions. (Is this very loosely based on my own relationship? Perchance.) That doesn't mean he doesn't love High Clarice though.  
> Just in time for Valentine's day. Hope you all enjoy the fluff. Lots of love!


	25. First kiss - Andy/Wes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's canon divergent, pretty much nothing after s1e08 happened, and life continued at equilibrium for several months. Some fluf between our boys Andy/Wes.

Andy had had crushes before, in theory. He’d look at attractive actors, or people at school, and he’d think about how lovely it’d be if they paid attention to him, went out with him. 

Kissed him. 

But nothing had prepared him for the intensity of a _real_ crush, the kind of butterflies-in-the-stomach he got when he looked at Wes. This was wholly uncharted territory, and Andy had no idea how to navigate.

Which meant he was currently freaking the _fuck_ out and fighting hard against the urges telling him to run the other way whenever he saw the other boy. 

Because that was ridiculous. Wes was sweet, and generally non-threatening no matter what Andy’s dad thought, and actually nice to Andy, which was a wholly mysterious feeling Andy wasn't used to at all. 

Boys were never _nice_ to him - they were either cruel or just kind of...chill. But Wes always shared food with him, and had an easy smile ready, and never treated Andy like a little kid. He always invited Andy to hang out for awhile, and listened to him talk.

Of course, there was one glaring problem. Andy didn’t exactly like being in love with his sister’s boyfriend.

Not in love. That was silly. It was just a crush, a useless crush, one that Andy could get over so easily if he only just…tried hard enough. Except months of trying had gotten him nowhere. 

Wes always invited him to hang out with them, which was incredibly awkward and heartwarming all at the same time. Wes and Lauren kept the PDA to a minimum when he was around, and he leaned into the “overbearing little brother” role to disguise the fact he was endlessly jealous of Lauren.

Why was she always the one with the hot boyfriend? In high school, and even now, when they were goddamn fugitives of the law. 

He hadn’t meant to get excited when Lauren told him that she and Wes had broken up, but he had, and he felt terrible as he patted her on the back. Luckily, she wasn’t too torn up - it was her that had done the dumping, and it was her that had lost the feelings.

After that, Wes avoided Lauren when he came by. It wasn’t because he was upset with her, the older boy told Andy, just that he felt incredibly awkward about the whole thing. 

Andy wondered why Wes would wanna hang out with him, the younger brother of the ex girlfriend, but he never gave the question voice. He didn’t want to shatter what fragile joy he’d managed to wrangle from stolen moments on the roof of the Underground. Wes’ power was pretty decent for creating fantasy landscapes, and the boys would swap drawing and mirage and would get wilder and wilder until they dissolved into laughter because Andy didn’t have anymore paper and because Wes had somehow covered the whole sky.

They held hands, sometimes, and they never talked about it, but it was probably because it was hard to be a teenage fugitive touch-starved boy and they understood each other, in a way. Wes was never afraid to sling an arm over his shoulders, and after the first time, Andy had learned to accept it, had learned that sometimes a guy could touch you with love and friendship instead of with the intent to destroy.

All Wes did was create - with his power, with his smile, with the way he always made sure Andy felt safe and listened to and supported.

God, Andy was such a goner. 

“Hey, Andy,” Wes called, hoisting two boxes worth of supplies. “Wanna help out? I think there’s a box of Gushers somewhere; if we unpack em, we get first dibs.”

Andy couldn’t resist the promise of Gushers, but more importantly, he couldn’t resist Wes.

“Yeah, man, of course.” He picked up another two boxes, doing his best to carry them without shaking (God that would be embarrassing) and following Wes back to their kitchen.

There were no Gushers, but there was Fruit by the Foot and a couple boxes of Pocky past the sell-by date. Andy wondered where they’d acquired these supplies, but figured it was maybe better not to ask.

“You ever played the Pocky game?” Wes asked, settling in on the roof.

Andy bit back his “that’s gay” response, realizing Wes might not take it in the spirit it was intended. The older boy was constantly making jokes about how “if you wanna be a swing, you gotta swing both ways,” but Andy wasn’t exactly...open about his own sexuality. Really only Lauren knew. So it could easily be taken as a condemnation.

“I have not,” he lied, hopeful that this day was about to get a lot more interesting.

Wes’ eyes lit up and he grinned mischievously. “It’s like this,” he said, pulling out a stick. “I take one side” - he put it in his mouth - “And you take the other,” he finished, muffled. “And we fight for the last piece.

“Like this?” Andy feigned ignorance, biting the other side. They got closer - closer - 

Andy snapped off his piece and pulled back, face hot. “You win,” he said.

“You didn’t even try, man,” Wes teased, and Andy couldn’t tell if he was blushing too. Somehow, he doubted it. “ _Weak._ ”

“Nuh uh.” Andy stuck out his tongue. “Fine, rematch.”

This time he didn’t back down. When he made it to the last piece, mere millimeters from Wes’ lips, he steeled himself and stuck his whole tongue in the other boy’s mouth, just to snag the treat. 

Or at least that’s what he told himself.

Wes fell back, cracking up. “Whoa, buy a guy dinner first.” He grinned, and Andy wondered if anything was ever difficult for him. “Also. This is how you do it.”

And then he leaned forward, taking Andy’s face in his hand, and pressed a slow, hungry kiss to his mouth. After a minute, he slowly poked his tongue against Andy’s lips, and made his way into his mouth.

By the time the broke apart, both were panting, and Andy’s face was even redder than before. 

Wes looked uncharacteristically shy. “Is - was that ok?” he asked. “I mean, I thought - but I know, your sister.”

“Lauren’s fine,” Andy replied, more decisively than he felt. What he really wanted was another kiss, so he went for it.

They’d figure out the awkwardness later. This? This was a moment worth savoring.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Listen I love Wes so much and I missed him this season. One of the things I've wondered was "What if Wes were in love with the Other Strucker Sibling Instead?" And we all love Andy's gay butt, so here we are.  
> Hope y'all enjoyed!


End file.
